Gabriel Jesus' Milan transfer rumours come at a pivotal time in Brazil star's Man City career

Before the recent defeat to Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester City had enjoyed a remarkable three-month spell during which they won 19 out of 21 games played in all competitions and drew plaudits for their outstanding performances.

The likes of Bernardo Silva, Joao Cancelo and Raheem Sterling were stand-out players as City put together a healthy-looking lead at the top of the Premier League table.

However, in the earlier part of the season it was another of Pep Guardiola's stars who provided a spark during an inconsistent start to the campaign.

Gabriel Jesus established himself in Guardiola's first-choice starting XI in a way that he hadn't managed to do since arriving at the club in early 2017.

That's not to say that Jesus hadn't enjoyed a successful time at City between 2017 and 2021 - on the contrary, the 82 goals he scored prior to 2021/22 was a fine return for a striker perpetually stuck in the shadow of Sergio Aguero.

Yet things felt different this year. Guardiola's insistence that Jesus should now be regarded as a right-sided winger rather than a striker gave the Brazilian a shiny new feel, almost as if he were a new signing.

In his first six league outings in his new role Jesus scored two goals and laid on four assists, while providing a high-pressing, workhorse like presence that neither Riyad Mahrez has never quite managed.

Particularly on the back-to-back 5-0 wins against Norwich and Arsenal, the 24-year-old looked like a new player. But when Sterling rediscovered his form after the November international break and Mahrez emerged as City's main goal-threat, Jesus found himself locked out of the position he had begun to make his own.

Only once since the 2-0 victory over Manchester United on November 6 has he